The present invention relates generally to window shades, and more particularly to window shades for insulated glass.
Insulated glass window assemblies with internal shades are well known. The insulated glass includes two glass panels separated by a spacer to define a space between the panels. The internal shade is positioned within the space and is operated by actuators that are outside of the insulated glass but magnetically coupled to the shade.
Some insulated glass window assemblies have integral shades which can suffer from pleat “blow-out,” which is a condition where the shade pleats no longer accordion fold together. One approach to preventing blow-out is to thread cords through the shade pleats to ensure that they always accordion fold together. Unfortunately, these cords are in the viewing area of the glass, and both the cords and the associated pleat holes detract from the aesthetics of the shade.
The IG shades often include a bar at the top and/or bottom of the shade to which the shade material is attached. Ideally, the bars remain level within the window, even after repeated operation. In reality, the bars often move out of level over time. Re-leveling the bars is difficult to impossible given the inaccessibility of the shade.